


Part of the Pack

by Komaeyda



Category: Left 4 Dead (Video Games)
Genre: Anal Sex, Breeding, Consensual Sex, M/M, Slow Burn, Zombie Apocalypse, Zombie Kissing, Zombie Love, Zombie sex, i'm not good with tags, like incredibly slow burn, uhh, undead love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:07:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 22,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25512550
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Komaeyda/pseuds/Komaeyda
Summary: You find yourself in the middle of a zombie apocalypse, and luckily you find friends - as unlikely as they may be.
Relationships: Hunter (Left 4 Dead)/Original Female Character(s), Hunter/Male!Reader, Hunter/Reader
Comments: 9
Kudos: 69





	1. Strange Happenings

Travelling this late at night in a zombie apocalypse probably wasn't the best idea, but with my supplies dwindling down to a mere half bottle of water and a handful of bullets, I wasn't going to last much longer. I had no choice. As long as I used stealth, watched where I was going, listened for booming footsteps, choking noises, and that disembodied, obnoxious crying, I would be fine. I have to be careful with how much water I drink, too. Who knows how long it will be before I find another source? It could be at my current destination, for all I know. Or it could be three days after I run out, ya know, when I'm dead or dying.  
Luckily, the store I was headed to was just at the end of this block. I slowly stood up to look over the roof of the pitifully abandoned car and down the street. There was no noise besides the sound of the wind blowing between the desolate buildings, carrying light debris such as paper and dust. It was hard to see, but the remaining lit street lamps didn't reflect any movement. I looked back to where I came from, and the limping undead I got past were already off the streets. They probably wandered back into alleyways or something. As long as they weren't there, I felt so much better.  
With my surroundings mapped in my head, I began making my way towards the establishment with a flickering, neon sign that used to say "open", but the "e" had long been burnt out. I made sure to stay close against the buildings, as well as crouch when there was too much open space, like the emptiness between each structure. The buzzing of the electric sign got louder and louder as I drew closer. It was such a nice sound, considering what supplies could await you here. Convenience stores always had essentials like canned food and jerky. Things like that could keep for years. Water lasted forever. Literally. But places like this in big cities also kept material things that could be found handy, like batteries, hand tools, and bags.  
I was finally at the door. The place looked almost untouched by looters. The virus must have hit this place hard. It was almost unreal. My [e/c] eyes widened with excitement, but I didn't let it get to my head. I had to stay vigilant on my surroundings if I wanted to stay alive. My shaky hand reached for the door handle and I pulled it very cautiously. This place was so run down, I couldn't risk the hinges squeaking or a loud scraping sound from it running across the ground. The glass door was wide enough for me to fit through, but I didn't want to get ahead of myself just yet. I only waited a few more moments, maybe three at the most, just listening to make sure nothing was inside. As luck would once again have it, there was nothing but the sound of my own heart beat in my ears.  
As silently as I could, I made my way into the store. To my left were a wall of broken refrigerators. No murmur of a machine running to keep its contents cold. No lights. Just dust covering the glass, but not so much that I couldn't see. At the first one I walked to, bottles of soda lined the shelves of the box. Those weren't going to get me anywhere energy wise. Plus they were most likely flat. The next fridge had energy drinks, and the two after that had beer. I was of age, and one might be nice to take the edge off before I go to sleep back at my shelter. It just wasn't worth the extra weight and bag space. I had my old, school backpack and pockets. That was it. I was here for food, water, and whatever ammunition I may or may not run across. So, stepping over to the last fridge, I finally found water. I pulled the bag off of my bag and opened it, then set it down and loaded up what I could. This was quite a ways out, but there seemed to have enough here for a few more trips. I only filled the bottom one-third of my bag just for the sake of weight. If I had to run, I needed to be light enough to do it.  
Next, I went down the isle just in front of the water fridge. Canned things sat on one side, so I grabbed a few canned meats and soups, bringing the bag to a little over half-full. Now I really needed some lighter things to take back. So, to the next isle I went. Thank god there was jerky here. There were only seven packs left, so I went ahead and grabbed them and filled up. I could save those for hard times, like if I had to go find a new shelter.  
Distant screeching I heard through the shattered windows told me it was getting time to go. I rushed up to the front of the store and behind the counter to snag a couple of lighters and the decently sized pocket knife from the display case. Now the high-pitched calls were closer, but still echoing softly against the buildings. A Hunter leading a Horde was no doubt heading this way. Panic set in, but I had time to get out. I quickly snatched up some bottles of pain pills and a small first aid kit, officially filling my bag. Feeling accomplished, yet still wary of the oncoming terror, I headed out and retraced my steps a little more quickly in the dark than I should have. The sound of my feet hitting the ground were a little louder than usual, but I needed to make it back. "It's okay, [y/n], you have time," I kept thinking to myself.  
About an hour of an anxiety attack later, and an intense sensation of someone following me too close for comfort, I had finally made it back to my base. It was a bank vault of all things, but there were impenetrable walls here. Eight inches of concrete plus a two inch layer of solid steel made this safe room ideal. Money had little to no value in this state of the world, so of course I threw out as much of it as I could to make room for myself and my things. I used the safe in the back left corner to store any food supplies I have, and the one on the right corner to store ammunition. Finding out how to reset the combinations wasn't very hard considering my father was a locksmith when he was still around. The door was set to unlock every six hours, so I could get out when I needed to. I reset the code to it, so whenever I go out, I can just close it and come back to open it when I need to. That door was heavy, though. If the common Infected were following me, and I was quite a bit ahead of them I'd have a chance to get in without harm; however, say a Witch, Hunter, or Jockey was on my tail... I might as well be Horde meat.  
Something had odd caught my eye when I returned, though. Right outside of the vault door sat exactly three unopened bottles of water and three cans of food. I certainly don't remember leaving those there. Maybe a looter came by and took some cash, then left something to even out the field? But lately things had been lying around in threes. Last week on the lobby counters at the entrance of the bank, I found three flowers. Two weeks ago, when I was heading out to my usual loot spot (which was just a little, hidden grocery store at the centre of the block), I found three books I considered grabbing when only the day before I had scavenged books from a book store down the street. The number could be insignificant for all I know, but it left me curious.  
By the time I was drawn from my thoughts, I had finished emptying my bag. Everything was neatly organised in my safe, so I was content with the current state of things. Now I could go ahead and formulate a plan for the next day. I had plenty of supplies to sit in and get my energy up, but I'd like to have ammunition to start clearing out the streets again. Sitting on the roof with a rifle, blowing off zombie heads from a safe distance was rather satisfying. The mall on the other side of the interstate in the centre of town had a decent stock, last time I was there. Hopefully it wasn't looted yet. I took a few big gulps of water from my bottle before laying down on my makeshift bed. It was just an old, queen size mattress that took forever to drag here thanks to the constant appearance of those damned creatures outside. I also covered it with a few blankets from the nearby thrift store so I wouldn't have to sleep on the bare, dirty surface. I was exhausted, so it didn't take too long before sleep pulled me in close, safe and sound.  
The morning rose, and so did I. Of course, I had no clue how early it was. Vaults tend to have exactly zero windows. I got back rather late. Late enough that the vault door was already unlocked when I returned, so I assume it was around 1:00 AM when I fell asleep. I went ahead and got up and scooted over towards the food vault to crack open a can of soup and scarf it down considering my stomach was practically roaring for food. It only took ten minutes for me to finish my meal. It was filling, but maybe one day I can figure out how to warm these up without needing a fire. I'd love to use the microwave in the bank's break room, but those things beep boisterously. Even if I caught it before its finishing beeps, the roar of the kitchen hardware would attract anything and everything nearby.  
I set the empty can aside and stood up to stretch. A yawn fell past my lips, but I wasn't the least bit tired from how long I slept, I'm sure I'm about to listen to the--  
**_*Beep*  
*Click, click*_**  
"I'll be damned."  
Well, now that the door was unlocked it was time to get ready. I had ten minutes to get out before the door locked up again if I wanted to get that ammunition. I pulled on my shoes and securely tied them, then grabbed my backpack, threw my water bottle in there with my hand gun, slipped my nifty, new pocket knife I looted from last night's gold mine into my pocket, and finally headed out. I left the door just a little askew to check the street and make sure the coast was clear. Once that was completed, I shut the vault and exited the building.  
A small jog wasn't too hard to keep up with. Stamina was quickly built up after everything went to shit. It also seemed the Infected didn't take to wandering out in the daylight very often, so I didn't have very much to worry about. Visibility was to its fullest thanks to the sun. No rain clouds were out, but it was in the middle of storm season. This weather could change very quickly, and that would mean sound cover and infected beings everywhere. I slowed down to a walk to make my way up the side of the interstate, looking around as I ascended the ramp because I really could not shake the feeling that I was being followed. No matter how much I checked behind me, to the sides, on the ground, and towards the sky, there was not a single animal, person, or undead in sight.  
As soon as I reached the top of the ramp, I broke into a sprint across the interstate. It was wide open and the walking corpses were scattered throughout the concrete plains. I thought I even saw one of those bulky, tall infected creatures in the distance too, which sent a shiver down my spine. I made it across the first four lanes, the median, and finally through the other four lanes and past some abandoned vehicles on the road. Some of the zombies seemed to start drifting my way, but most seemed disinterested during bright daylight. It seemed to suck the energy right out of them.  
Within moments, I was down the other ramp and officially on the other side of town. A fence jump later, and I was in the mall parking lot.  
"One last sprint, [y/n]," I told myself. Being out in the open wouldn't do me any bit of good, but at least there were a few cars incase I needed emergency cover. I took off as hard as I could. The remaining distance was the length of a football field, but I could do it. This was nothing compared to the first few months after the outbreak. As I hopped up onto the sidewalk, I slowed my pace, stopping just before I'd end up throwing myself against the glass doors. Nothing was in sight, so I loitered there for a few moments to catch my breath and get my energy back up. While I rested, I pulled the pocketknife out to take a closer look at it. I pulled the blade out, but there was more than just a fuller blade. Another pull revealed a small pair of scissors, another revealed a smaller, thinner blade, another was a screwdriver, then a bottle-opener, and finally a serated blade. This was going to come in very handy.  
Seeing as my breathing was back to normal, I pocketed the tool and opened the door to peek inside. Infected bodies with heads that either had chunks missing, a few bullet holes, or were completely obliterated told me that someone else had been through here. Hopefully it was the nearby survivor group's scavengers and not a travelling group of looters. They kill on the spot for supplies. I decided to enter the building since this was the second floor. The gun shop was only on the other side, and this place had clearly been cleaned out. I walked at my own pace, ignoring the smell of rotting flesh in favour of the establishment's remaining smell. It brought a little bit of nostalgia to play through my head. My family and I would come here almost every weekend when I was a kid. Sometimes Mom wouldn't wanna go, so Dad and I would go grab a pizza here just because it was our favourite pizza in town.  
Getting lost in my thoughts and memories seemed to make the time pass faster. I was already at the front door of my mission today. Eagerly entering the store, I went straight for the bullets. I had a hand gun in my bag, then a rifle and a shotgun at my base. That's all the firepower I needed. It seemed looters or scavengers were definitely here seeing as a lot of the AK bullets and shotgun shells were gone, but they weren't here now. So what was left was fair game. I hopped over the counter and set my bag on top of the glass case and started loading up bullets for my 5mm hand gun. Then I moved left a few feet and took the last few boxes of shotgun bullets, as well as plenty of ammunition for my rifle. That was all I needed. Mission complete with my bag still having plenty of room for whatever supplies I may find on my way back.  
By the time I made it back to the door, I heard a shout followed by several gunshots.  
"Tank!"  
"There's two of them!"  
Usually in situations like this, I would be running so far away from here as fast as I could, but those shouts were familiar. Tanks wouldn't give me enough time to settle with a shotgun. I'm not very fast at loading those things. Plus, I've only ever seen one before. From what I saw, it was very difficult to kill. I could use my handgun, but that would make more noise and attract more of the infected than damage that thing.  
By the time I had made up my mind to grab the grenades from behind the counter, the gunshots ceased. No time, now. Without hesitation, I skipped grabbing anything else and made a dash into the large hallway, towards the commons area at the crossway between two main hallways. I made a lot of noise running, but I didn't care. If they were who I was thinking of, it was worth it. As soon as I rounded the corner... my face dropped. It wasn't the scavengers for the survivors of the west sector of town. Were they looters? They had to be. I kept a pokerface, standing my ground. There was nothing in my hands, so I couldn't be very intimidating. All four off them were staring at me now.  
"Well... Who should talk first?" The rather redneck-looking young man who seemed to be about my age asked, and also in turn talked first. Which was followed by a slap to the back of his head from his better dressed team mate.  
"You just talked first, idiot."  
I wasn't sure how to react, but I certainly relaxed. They certainly didn't seem dangerous. Thank god these looters weren't freelance murderers. I noticed the girl roll her eyes.  
"Ignore those two," she stated, walking towards me. "My name's Rochelle."  
"I'm Ellis!" The first man chimed in again rather excitedly. If only I had his kind of energy.  
"Coach," the larger man leaning against the wall said as he pointed to himself with his thumb  
"And the pessimist is Nick," Rochelle said, since the guy in the suit didn't seem to want to introduce himself.  
With a soft smile, I finally introduced myself. "I'm [y/n]. It's nice to meet all of you."  
  
~ ??? POV ~  
  
I knew where the human was headed, so there was no need to follow him just yet across the giant road. A growl rumbling in my chest told my two pack mates to come a little closer. We had been following him for about a month now since claiming the territory. We couldn't have done it without his help, since he usually sat out of the way in a high spot above his shelter and shot at several of the Infected in the area, even cutting down a few problem undead creatures like the naked ones that like sitting on humans' shoulders and tearing at their faces, as well as a pale, crying girl with very long and scary claws at the bottom of a hospital.  
As soon as he disappeared over the top of the paved road, we followed suit. There was no way I could lose him. I'm so fond of his scent. I'd been tracking him so long, even if I lost his sweet smell, I could predict his path perfectly. I ran to the top of the hill, but dodged line of sight behind a rusted vehicle and watched him through the tinted windows. Where had he gotten such amazing speed? He was already going down the hill on the other side. I sniffed the air and looked around, mapping the area and the Infected that strayed around the wide road. I'm definitely grateful the sun doesn't drain that much energy from me.  
We stayed at the side of the interstate, hiding behind the stone walls that lined the shoulder of it. I peeked over the top of the concrete obstruction just for a moment. He was moving quite quickly for a human across the large bit of pavement that had worn white paint from use and weather. I could move so much faster, though. He stood a good chance against Hordes. As long as that Horde didn't have any Infected like himself or ones with good range.  
When I relaxed to sit against the wall, I looked at the younger of my two remaining pack mates. He was probably 18 or 19 years old when he turned. His face still held a rather soft expression, but it was hidden by the dark green hood and his wild, ginger hair. He seemed to be distracted, so I looked over to my older pack member. He was a bit older than me, though I wasn't sure by how much. It was likely he was at least 25 when he became an Infected. Neck-length blonde hair and his burgundy hoodie made him stand out a little more than others like us. Me, I just had a deep blue hoodie. It wasn't a very dark shade like most, but I could still blend in with a Horde if need be. Fun part was, whatever memories the original owner of this body had, we don't have. We merely held common knowledge that was more or less what helped us survive this long.  
By the time I peered over the wall again, I saw the glass door shut behind the human as he entered the mall. The door didn't even have time to settle before I hopped over the wall and swiftly made my way down the hill, over the fence, and into the parking lot. Following him through those doors would be too obvious, so as soon as we reached the building, we jumped and scaled the side to the roof. Then, after a quick sprint and leap to the other side of the building, we were through the roof door and scampering down the stairs to what we assumed was the second floor. This was where we believed he was; although, our own sudden entrance was soundly hidden by several gunshots echoing through the hall. I held back my hand as a gesture to my pack to stay hidden for now.  
I moved through the darkness of the building. Most of the ceiling lights were broken, and this hall didn't have any ceiling windows. I knew if I ran into trouble, I could call for my kin Hunters for aid, though I doubted I'd need assistance any time soon. It wasn't too much longer before I picked up his scent again as it wafted from the crossed hallways I was approaching. There I heard four separate voices, then a fifth one had gently spoken. That was his voice. It had to be. I never truly had the chance to hear it fully before, but it made my chest tighten almost as if this were a living body.  
I got as close as I could, getting into my own hearing range to be able to make out what was being said in their conversation. The way the older man in the white kept looking at him was quite disgusting... I'd very much enjoy colouring that suit of his with his own red, though making a move this early could prove to be fatal judging by the size of their fire power.  
Their conversation seemed rather brief as the woman said, "We need to get moving, but we'll be staying in this town for a few more days. There's a chance we'll run into each other again." Her farewell was followed by the young male human who decided to ruffle his [h/c] hair with his own parting words. Holding back a snarl was a little difficult. How dare that human touch something that wasn't his?  
I waited just another moment for the area to clear out of those weird humans before following my target again. He headed down a separate hall to head back to his home, I assume. So, I watched him head for the exit door, then turned around to make my way back to my small pack and continue to follow him. Something stopped me, though. It wasn't another human or a territorial Infected. It wasn't even an immobile object in my path. There was an awful stench of smoke. My bright blue eyes widened at the sound of his scream. It had already gotten him. Before I could even process the thought, I was already on all fours, running as fast as I could back towards the hall he traversed.  
  
~ Reader POV ~  
  
Parting ways with the oddly matched team wasn't too hard. I had to brush my hair out of my face after Ellis messed with it, but they all seemed rather nice except that Nick guy. Maybe running into them again wouldn't be so bad? That feeling of being watched was probably the presence of other living humans. I'm certainly not used to being around so many people, let alone one these days.  
I went back down the hallways from which I entered the building to go ahead and make my way back. Of course, with my shit luck, I could make out clouds forming over head through the tinted windows of the back entrance to the mall. I picked up a little bit of a jog to reach the door a little more quickly. Getting caught in a storm wasn't my cup of tea without the Infection outbreak and all.  
A small sense of fear filled my head, and by the time I figured out what it was, I noticed the dreadful scent of smoke. Smoker. Picking up the pace, I dashed to the door as quickly as I could. The unevenly paced foot stomps accompanied by choked coughing told me it was just coming out of one of the abandoned stores I passed. Relief would be mine if I could just reach that door and get the hell out of here.  
My hand gripped the door handle and I was just getting it open. My heart pumped with joy for just a moment when the door parted from its frame - until I felt that gross, slimy appendage wrap firmly around my torso. A scream ripped from my throat as a cry for help because maybe-- just maybe Rochelle and her team would here me. They might come back to help. The dreaded creature kept tightening its tongue around me, pulling harder and harder to get me to let go of the door. I held on as hard as I could. My shoulders were screaming with pain to make me let go, not until my arms were actually ripped off, and I so hoped that would never happen. The obnoxious smoke fumes were making me nauseous, and my grip on the door was slipping as I was now suspended just a couple of feet from the ground holding on to the door handle for dear life. And then it happened.  
My hold slipped out of my hands, and with that, my hopes of getting out of here safely. I reached for my pocketknife, because perhaps the serated blade could help me, so-- Where was it. My free hand felt around both pockets, but nothing was felt. I stared hopelessly as I spotted the tool sitting just at the doorway. It had fallen out of my pocket. I couldn't reach my backpack from this angle. A screech peeled through the hallway, startling both me and smoker. It stopped dragging me, but only for a second. I tried to look back over my shoulder, and with some lasting effort, I was looking my death times two right in the face. The Hunter was on all fours and looked pissed as hell, while I was just five feet from the disgusting Infected dragging me towards itself. Tunnel vision made its way into my sight. Pure terror had filled my veins, and the smell of rotten flesh and cigarette smoke was overwhelming. I wanted to puke, but there was nothing I could do about it. I was done for, anyways.  
The last thing I looked back at was the Hunter pouncing, but it certainly wasn't aiming for me. Haha. That's it. It wants to rip apart the Smoker for intruding on its territory, then go for me, its very next meal. With a whine of defeat, I passed out and expected to never wake up again.  
  
~ Hunter POV ~  
  
I charged down the hall as fast as I could, letting instinct fuel me as I lept in to protect what was mine. My focus was on the Smoker. My goal was to save my human without letting any damage fall to him. By the time I had my malicious target on the ground, my companions had arrived. The blonde quickly put himself to work, ripping the rotting tongue from the human's body. It was then, when he failed to react out of fear or shock, that I realised he must have fainted. Whether it was out of fear, stress, or the nauseating smell remaining in the air was left to question for a later time.  
My younger pack mate helped me put down the flailing mass of rotting, smoking flesh. We left the body there as a warning for other Infected not to mess with us or this young adult male, but knowing these things... Most of them were far too gone to even be conscious of what they're doing. I looked over to my other pack mate as he was picking up the human as gently as clawed hands could. We would have to bring him back to his vault before clouds pulled in any closer. The smell of a storm on the wind meant more Infected occupying the streets and open areas.  
We had never been so close to this human before. We were always so scared of startling him, which would no doubt result in either us or him getting hurt. That would hopefully never happen. I knew we should hurry back before the rain set in, but I wanted a closer look at him myself. Moving quietly so I wouldn't startle him awake, I moved in right in front of my larger pack mate. His gaze was fixated on the human's soft features as well. I reached to touch his [h/c] hair for just a moment. Just long enough to satisfy my want for interaction with this human. The wind hitting the building from outside reminded me we needed to go.  
I was out first, kicking the door open wide enough for my blonde companion to travel through with the human. The younger pack member followed soon enough, looking a little nervous as he glanced around and back at the human, then repeating the process again and again. There were three of us, plus the remaining stink of that coughing, smoky, tall Infected that had a hold of the human earlier. Hopefully his smell wouldn't track around too much with the wind and attract something else.  
The clouds above were closing in quickly. We wanted to race the weather back to his safe room, but if we went too fast it might result in sickening the human. Our reputation wouldn't go over very well with him, if that were the case. We made it over the bridge in enough time as well as the following street block. The rain began to fall. At first, it was a gently sprinkle, but the weather developed too quickly. A roar of thunder passed, and with that, calls of distant Infected echoed through the streets. Very subtly, I heard a small, stuttered gasp follow the orchestra of sounds eminating from the city and the storm. My sky blue eyes traced back for a moment as we reached our destination to see that he had woken up.  
  
~ Reader POV ~  
  
Cold rain hitting my face was enough to wake me up from my fever dream. The last thing I remember was a Smoker constricting me and suffocating me with his nauseating fumes. I still felt so sick, almost like I could throw up any moment. The movement didn't help one bit. Wait. Movement? Why in Hell was I moving? I opened my eyes very slowly. It felt like my eyelids were glued together, but I had to see what was happening. The only thing I could really register was the rain, movement, and someone's arms were around me. Did that group of survivors return and save me? In that case, who was carrying me? He was a little stinky, so maybe it was Nick?  
As soon as my [e/c] eyes focused, the movement stopped. Who I was looking at-- What I was looking at took the breath out of me. A gasp escaped me, but I choked on the air. I struggled to breathe for a moment, yet I needed to get away from this thing. I pushed against its chest as hard as my sickened state would let me, but it didn't let go. My gaze looked upward again to look at a rather... offended expression? Honey-coloured eyes looked away from me and towards elsewhere in the direction of a grunt. My focus followed where he was looking. Another Hunter. Before I had time to react, I was lowered to the ground. As soon as one of my hands caught friction on the ground, I scrambled away as quickly as I could until my head loudly came in contact with the solid object behind me. My hands reached the back of my head to apply pressure and hopefully end the pain. Just great. Headache. Nausea. Fatigue... Hunters.  
I pulled my knees up to my chest as I heard a very close, distorted whine. Once I focused my gaze again on what it was, I was greeted by an ashen face inches from mine. Accepting my fate, my whole body had frozen. I was unable to move. I could still feel the weight of my backpack, but a Hunter could rip me apart before I had the chance to open the bag. Then, the familiarity of the Infected who was far too close hit me. Raven hair, blue hoodie. That moment when I lost consciousness with the Smoker. Did this... thing... this undead creature... save me? Blue eyes met my [e/c] ones. He didn't look so angry or frustrated. He looked rather... like he was observing me? Maybe I caught a hint of concern, but what blood-thirsty zombie would actually be worried about a living human? Perhaps a better question would be pertaining to why they hadn't killed me yet.  
**_*Beep*  
*Click, click*_**  
The sound had startled me, and apparently the Hunters, too, as the one closest to me jumped back and the blonde one took on an offensive position. I looked behind me, seeing what I had bumped into. It was my vault door. I was at my shelter? Did they bring me here? Maybe they just followed my scent back to kill me here. That had to be it. But maybe it wasn't? If that was their intentions they would have done it already. So many different thoughts were racing through my head. What I had been training myself to avoid, kill, and fear all this time, yet there were two right in front of me. My heart was probably ready to break free from my chest, because the pounding hurt quite a bit.  
A soft whine from behind the two really set off my anxiety. The black-haired Hunter moved to the side as a red-head took his place. The boy's head was lowered as he slowly approached me. He whined a few more times, seeming almost like a child afraid of being lashed out at even though he didn't do anything wrong. I kept my ground seeing as I couldn't move anywhere else.  
Once he was close enough, he dropped a pocket knife next to my feet. I stared at him for just another long moment before reaching for it. It was what I dropped at the mall. My pocket knife with a few extra tools on it. I don't know if these things could understand speech, but I could at least try. The black-haired one saved me, the blonde Hunter seemingly carried me here, and the ginger one retrieved what I thought I lost. There was no way they were planning on hurting me.  
"Th--... Thank... you?" I said in almost a whisper. As a result, speaking seemed to irritate my throat. A few hoarse coughs were forced out, and I held my hand to my forehead in hopes that the room would stop spinning. Now I'm sick. I focused on the group of Hunters to see the one in the blue hoodie barking something at his companions. Within a few seconds, the two took off to whomever knows where.  
**_*Beep*_**  
That noise meant the door was about to lock back again. I had been sitting here too long. Finally moving again, I braced my weight against the door and stood up. The action made my headache far more worse. Grasping for the handle of the steel door, I noticed the Hunter who stayed behind was watching me with a rather curious gaze that still held that hint of concern. He didn't seem to make any more moves, so I went ahead and put everything I had into getting the door open on my safe room. With enough muscle, it finally parted from its frame and I had enough room to get inside; however, the pale grey Hunter invited himself into the room, forcing the door a little further open himself on his way.  
I stumbled around the door and entered the room to go straight to bed. The Hunter remained by the doorway, watching outside towards the glass windows. I assumed he was waiting on what was probably his small pack to return. Plus he didn't seem to like it too much when I tried to close the door. As soon as I reached my bed, I kicked off my shoes and laid down. It wasn't until my body was lying against the soft mattress that I realised how much everything hurt. Yes, I was sick to my stomach, it hurt to breathe, and I had a throbbing headache. My legs felt so sore and my back and shoulders were killing me as well. It had to be from carrying that backpack for so long, even while that rather large Hunter carried me back.  
I looked back over too where the Hunter was by the door to see he was watching me. He seemed a little surprised when I took notice to his stare, so he promptly turned his gaze outside again. Part of me was screaming to stay awake and make sure he wouldn't try to off me in my sleep, but the other part told me I was safe with him - that napping properly was likely for the best. The latter added to my trust in the Infected. Like I told myself before, if they wanted to kill me, I would most certainly be dead by now.


	2. Unexpected Caretakers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hot zombies? In my saferoom? It's more likely than you think.

~ Hunter POV ~  
  
I don't know how long it had been since my pack mates left to find our human medicine. Those Smoker fumes were brutal, and to what degree he had coughed when he tried to speak worried me quite a bit. I looked back to where he was sleeping. It was nearly laughable by this time he already trusted me enough to pass out so soon. His skin was becoming a slightly pallid. That didn't look healthy in what relation to what we usually saw him as. It probably wouldn't hurt to check up on him, so I decided to leave my post at the entrance for the time being. If someone - or something - came close, I would be able to hear and smell them before they had the chance to enter the building.  
Cautiously as to not startle the human awake, I made my way over to an open spot next to his cot on the floor. We anonymously helped him get this ratty mattress to here by separating groups of the Infected and leading them off towards us to take them out. It was relatively easy, seeing as how stupid most of the common ones were. By stroke of luck, we managed to kill one of those green-spitting women before it got too close, too.  
He seemed so much more peaceful in his sleep. Quite a change to that fear-stricken gaze he had earlier. I was certain he was going to hate us for our appearances; although, I felt awful for revealing ourselves so soon, but we couldn't have simply left him there for something else to get him with a small chance of those other survivors coming around again. Even if we managed to find them and lead them to his unconscious body, there was a good chance we would have gotten hurt. Our bodies are dead. There was no way we would be able to heal if bullets pierced a limb or a baseball bat collided with our ribcage.  
Perhaps when he woke up, we might exchange names? That would be nice. I'd prefer to stop referring to him as just "human". What does he refer to me as that isn't being said out loud? "It"? "Zombie"? "Abomination"? Maybe that classification the humans gave us. "Hunter", was it? It sounds kind of cool... but I don't enjoy being grouped with anyone except my companions. Even then, we aren't that much alike.  
I began leaning in a little only for another look at his facial features. It was almost unfair how cute he was. This time, I reached to touch his jawline. I know my fingers were slightly calloused from whatever life this body had previously, but I tried my hardest to trace his jaw as gently as I was able. A soft groan left his lips as he shifted a bit. Did I wake him up? I jumped back a short distance, focusing on his smaller form as I remained crouched and close to the floor. His eyes didn't open. He wasn't making any other noises. Perhaps I merely disturbed his sleep slightly? He still seemed lost to the conscious world, though.  
Time for round two. I wanted to be close to him, and now seemed like the best time. If he was awake, I would probably scare him away. Affection and zombies probably didn't mix for the humans. Once again, I approached his makeshift bed. It appears he moved a bit further towards the other side, so I shifted my position and rested my knees against the mattress. The weight shift on the soft mattress didn't seem to bother him, so I proceeded further. Leaning forward, my hands were placed on each side of him. That was a heavier weight shift, but he still seemed to be okay. I hoped, at least. I leaned in a bit closer, stopped for a moment, and then more to make sure my encompassing presence didn't awaken him. Soon enough, my face was inches from his neck. His scent was so... calming. It had a little bit of a sweetness to it, but it wasn't overwhelming the affect it had on me. I so badly wanted to hold him close to me and cover myself in his smell, in turn having my own cover him. He probably wouldn't find so much physical contact this soon agreeable, though.  
"What--" I heard a sleepy voice beneath me begin. With a small fit of panic, I swiftly hopped a few feet from the cot. As soon as I looked at his face again, he was slowly rising up from his slumber. Regrettably, it seems I've woken him up. On the bright side, he didn't show much sign of being upset and I didn't smell any fear in the air. His expression revealed mostly confusion. That was good - a few steps up from terror, at least. Continuing to bother him probably wouldn't be wise, so I turned towards the doorway and trotted right over to my former spot to keep watch at the entrance.  
A few minutes of vocal silence passed. I heard shuffling behind me in the safe room. The sound of blankets being pushed aside, foot steps on solid ground, then what sounded in manner of a paper notebook being flipped through. I didn't want to appear too curious. Besides, getting him medicine was drastically important. I'm glad my friends were so willing to go, but someone had to stay behind to keep an eye out on the human.  
"What's your name?" A raspy question filled the silence. I responded quite eagerly.  
"Matthias," I stated as I looked back at him. He looked quite surprised and still... confused. Ah, right. We didn't really share the same language. It probably sounded a kind of aggressive, similar to a sharp growl. Was there anything I could write on? Foam letters that children use in day care were probably out of the question. It wasn't until I turned completely to face him again when I noticed a pen and some paper in front of him. I then took it upon myself to leap right in front of him and snatched up the pen. My handwriting was so horrible. Maybe I would get points for trying?  
  
~ Reader POV ~  
  
The first thing I noticed when I started to wake up was an extra weight pushing down the mattress a bit flatter around me. Next was the sensation of hot air against my neck. I shivered slightly, but it might have just been where we left the vault entry open. A breeze here in there would be obvious. I reevaluated my thought process and by what means I described the air as 'hot'. It was still late winter. Plus it had begun raining earlier. The air should be quite cool at this time. Was the Hunter who stayed behind...? I opened my eyes only to have my suspicions proved.  
"What--" I began to speak, feeling the consequence of speaking so soon after waking up and while feeling so sick take its toll against my throat. I couldn't continue so soon, and he was already across the room and at the door to keep watch again. Did I startle him? Or did he thing he scared me? My fear subsided right before I went to sleep. If I was supposed to be their next meal, I would not have woken up after the incident with the Smoker.  
I sat up and stretched my arms above my head. My upper back popped with the movement and the tension in my shoulders dissolved rather quickly. There was still the pitter-patter of rain hitting the windows outside. That would definitely bring additional Infected out onto the streets from abandoned buildings and covered alleyways. Odd sounds make them curious. The Hunter at the room's opening didn't seem very interested, though. My eyes scanned the room for the extra paper and pens that I keep around for those "stay inside" days. Sometimes I write, other times I draw. With how things are now, you can't simply pull out a phone and play games on it when you're bored. I decided to go ahead and get out of bed to retrieve a pen and a few of the papers for a particular reason. It would be nice to know these Hunters' names so I may stop referring to them by their qualities.  
Once I sat down again, I put the paper in front of me on the floor with the pen on top and finally asked, "What's your name?" Since being a little more awake, talking didn't hurt as much as earlier, but it still felt as if I swallowed a knife. His quick response surprised me a bit. That meant he understood what I said, but I only got a low-pitched bark in return. I watched his lips for whatever chance I might have at reading them, but I still couldn't tell. He seemed to pick up on my confusion as he pounced over to sit right in front of me. Of course out of habit, my heartbeat jumped me for a second, but only showing as a small hop in my spot on the floor. I'm certainly glad he didn't seem to take notice as he scribbled like a young kid recently learning to write. As soon as he was finished, he dropped the pen and relaxed. His expression seemed a bit prideful of himself, seeing as he still had the ability to write - sorta.  
To start, the first letter was certainly an 'M'. I picked up the paper and studied it as hard as I could. It was amazing that he still had the comprehension of written language! Too bad his handwriting was pre-school at best. The second letter was smaller than the 'M', but it looked akin to a mini 'Q' with where he drew the line. The two following letters were 't', so I'm guessing it was an 'a'. So far we have 'Matt'. Unfortunately, it looked as if he lost his patience writing after that, and the next letter I was capable of making out was the last. It was an 's'. That rules out the name 'Matthew'. Begins with 'Matt' and ends with 's'... Oh yeah.  
"Matthias?" I asked, hoping I got the pronunciation right. His enthusiastic head nod and soft purr confirmed it. Good start! Now that I knew his name, it was common courtesy to give mine, even if I didn't have the other two yet, "I'm [y/n]." I wasn't sure where to take the conversation seeing as we wouldn't really be able to hold one. I would prefer to thank him and the other two for saving me, but that might have to wait. He seemed very pleased that he now knew my name and I knew his. I felt a whole lot better now, too. Emotionally, that is. I might as well be coughing up a cactus every time I decide to speak.  
The sound of light foot steps and glass crunching outside the vault made me scoot backward towards the wall next to my cot where I placed my backpack in my sleepy haze earlier. Matthias creeped over to the doorway, but he wasn't in an offensive or defensive stance. Just within seconds of me unzipping my bag, a dark green hood with unruly, orange hair peeked into the room as if waiting to be invited in. Right as I opened my mouth, the Hunter who had carried me home pounced on him, and the two of them came tumbling over the portal frame right into the center of the room. I couldn't help the soft, airy laugh that fell past my lips. The one in the red hoodie was so tall and decently built. He was far past six feet tall, but how far was the part I wasn't able to tell. Yet, the younger-looking one was so small and looked to have very minimal muscle. Judging by my own height, he was only 5'7" or 5'8". I hated to interrupt their oddly charming wrestling match, but they were starting to get a little out of hand.  
Matthias growled at the two who quickly stopped. Thank Heaven I wasn't the one who had to break up the play-fight between lethal zombies. The blonde got off of the pinned ginger on the floor and left him to saunter over to my side. He clumsily fidgeted with his pocket to pull out two things. The first, to my relief, was a real bottle of medicine. I had forgotten to grab any while I had my expedition to that convenience store. It was a large bottle of ibuprofen. The label stated it contained two-hundred. He probably only grabbed it because it was so big and looked important and colourful. In what respect could one show appreciation to such a stone-faced Infected? I certainly didn't know.  
As he was pulling out the second item, the smaller Hunter had trotted over to us and dropped a bottle of a dark, liquid medicine in my lap. I turned it over to see the label stating 'for sore throats, coughing, and fever'. This one was certainly better for my current needs. Eager to get better, I pulled my water bottle out of my backpack. I popped open the bottle of ibuprofen, and swallowed down two pills with a gulp of water. Next, I went ahead and opened the cough medicine, took a sip of what I assumed was close to the recommended dosage, then chased that nasty taste down with a gulp of water.  
"Thank you," I said softly, trying not to irritate my throat too much this time. I wondered if these two comprehended human speech as can Matthias, but the nod from the smaller Hunter confirmed at least one of them got it. Deciding to push my luck, I wanted to learn their names as well. "What should I call each of you?" The blonde tilted his head to the side only barely and the other let out a drawn-out chirp at him which seemed to help him understand. He scooted the other item he had closer to me. I hadn't taken a look at it quite yet, so I went ahead and picked up the-- rock? It was a black, light-weight rock that fit almost perfectly in the palm of my hand. It was matte and some chipped sides were shiny and smooth. It was a piece of coal. I did start to wonder where he got it, but there were train tracks nearby where trains from the mines further south used to go back and forth. This was honestly such a cute way to tell me his name, if this was his intention.  
"Is your name... Cole?" I still had to ask, just to make sure. The Hunter in the dark red hoodie nodded very subtly. He was rather intimidating how emotionless he seemed, so he must not be far from the other Hunters that soullessly attack. Or actually "well-mannered". I looked over at the Hunter in the dark green. "What about you?"  
By the time I finished my question, Matthias brought over some of the paper I had left with him and the pen and sat them in front of the young male. I suppose Cole doesn't understand written language at his stage. The one scribbling on paper must've become an Infected not too long ago, although his handwriting was still at elementary level. It was to a greater extent understandable than Matthias's, that was for sure. His name was a little further out there, too.  
"And your name is Soren?" He nodded a bit more obviously than his friend. "It's..." I haven't had to talk this much in such a long time. "It's nice to meet all of you." A yawn stopped me from talking further as I looked towards the slightly open metal door. There was quite a lack of light, so that meant it was already night. What a wild ride today was. "Thank you," I said as I met eyes with all of them. From what I could tell, the mystery of the items being left around in threes was solved. It made sense from where they willingly have helped me so far, how comfortable they made me feel already, and it was most likely them watching me that I felt all this time. I was so, so lucky.  
I would have loved to try to communicate with them better, but there was a sense of fatigue that still held my body. I had plenty of supplies for now, so I wouldn't have to go out for a while, but it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to head out for some clothes or something tomorrow with warmer weather right around the corner. Washing clothes from last year wasn't exactly a luxury one would have in the middle of an apocalypse when you can rarely gain access to a bath.  
As I crawled into bed, I noticed Soren take off to the entrance. I guess closing it wouldn't be a good idea. Plus I had these three now. It was like I had guard dogs. Three energetic, zombie, guard dogs. From the show they put on today, I was pretty confident they wouldn't let anything happen to me. I slipped underneath the covers that felt a bit cooler than I remember. Spring nights in the city were pretty cold. I would wish to shut the door to stop the breeze, but they would either have to be trapped in this room with me all night or outside until I open the entry tomorrow. They might not appreciate that.  
I closed my eyes in hopes that my body heat alone would be enough to warm up the sheets and let me fall asleep, but only a few minutes in left me shivering. That was great. My muscles were sore enough from being constricted by that Smoker earlier and running so much, and I certainly didn't need this. It would definitely slow down my healing process as well. I started to turn over to hopefully grab another blanket or layer of clothes to get me warm, but then I remembered how warm Cole was when he carried me and warm Matthias's breath was. Cole didn't seem to enjoy being bothered with mundane tasks, but earlier the black-haired Hunter was rather eager to get close to me while I was sleeping. All I had to do was ask. It couldn't be that hard. It's not as if they were fully human and would judge you over a simple request. Could they...?  
My muscles began to tense up, making shivering a bit more painful than for what it's worth. I sat up for a second to pull on the nearby hoodie I kept handy. It was cold right now, but it had to help me warm up sooner or later. As soon as my head popped out the top of the thick piece of clothing, I noticed Cole was watching me from near the exit and Matthias was doing the same, but he was at the foot of my bed. By the way they were looking at me, they had some knowledge of my situation. My words were caught in my throat. They had already done so much for me. Supplementary to what I thought they were capable of. Defeated by my own thought process, I laid down again and pulled the blankets up to my chin.  
The extra clothing did stop the draft of cold around my torso and trapped a little bit of the warmth I was slowly producing. The blanket helped further for my predicament, but I knew I was going to be uncomfortable for a while. I shut my eyes and felt sleep willingly wanting to take over this time; despite this, a weight pressed down the foot end of the mattress ever so hesitantly. I chose not to move besides my quaking form continuing to make aggressive attempts to produce additional heat. My eyes remained shut. A soft snort came from who I assumed was Matthias who was making another move to be in manner of that cat who wants to curl up next to you and sleep with you, but when you show any sign of being awake, the cat pretends he wasn't interested and jumps off the bed to find something else to do.  
I felt the mattress press down beside me as he crawled all the way up to where I was facing. He leaned down to my neck like before and breathed in and out slowly. Was he... smelling me? Was that what he was doing before? I could feel heat radiating off of him, though. In my drowsy state, I reached out from underneath my still cool sheets and laid my hand on his. He twitched slightly, but it hardly went by unnoticed. Matthias either moved really fast or my consciousness was fading in and out too frequently because he was underneath the blankets with me in a moment's notice. As I felt wonderful heat surround me and my shivering body relaxed until I was still, I fell unconscious.  
  
~ Matthias POV ~  
  
His sporadic breathing told me he wasn't sleeping again just yet. I noticed violent vibrations throughout the blanket, and none of them were consistent. He was no doubt used to the vault portal remaining shut whenever he was in here, so I could only assume he was nervous. Since we arrived the entry has remained open. We didn't really want to be confined to one room, but we didn't want there to be anything dangerous approaching our mate interest. Keeping him safe and alive was our priority.  
Cole had gone to go sit with Soren, leaving me at the foot end of [y/n]'s bed. I watched him, listening for anything that might be a bad sign in his stages of illness. Maybe he was shaking from nausea? I was not able to quite tell. He sat up for a moment and grabbed a thick, long-sleeved piece of clothing from the floor next to the bed and pulled it on. I don't know why I didn't realise this sooner - he was cold. We didn't understand the feeling anymore. The constant heat fever and our jackets kept us rather comfortable in the cold seasons. His tired [e/c] gaze fixated on me for a moment. Did he want something? He went down underneath his blankets before saying anything.  
I put a little thought into it before continuing with the idea. He didn't seem too panicked earlier when I woke him up. I placed both of my hands on the end of the mattress and pressed my weight forward. No movement. Next, I cautiously crawled onto the cot and moved about half way up. I let out an exaggerated sigh as a short laugh, realising he wasn't asleep yet. Was he wanting my attention so badly? In a short amount of time, I managed to reach my way next to him and get underneath the blanket with him. As soon as I touched him, I could certainly feel the temperature difference.  
My arm went around his torso to pull his shivering frame flush against my body. Hopefully he wouldn't mind too much when he wakes up later. Not too much time passed before he had finally stopped. His breathing thankfully evened out, too. I rested my forehead against his shoulder. Of course, I didn't have the resolve to resist taking in his scent. Besides being his heater, there wasn't much else I could do. None of us could actually sleep, plus we didn't really feel tiredness or fatigue. It was taken out of our systems the moment we were no longer human.  
I moved to rest my chin on the top of his head, listening to his soft breathing pattern. Every bit of me hoped for him to feel better by the time he woke up. It was only a little flu from whatever that Smoker carried; however, leaving the door open on a night like this was a bad idea. Just for a moment, I lifted my head to look at Cole with a simple order. [Y/N] was asleep, so I didn't want to risk waking him, and I was too comfortable to move.  
"Cole, get Soren in here and shut the entrance," I said as softly as I was able to manage. The blonde Hunter nodded and sauntered out of the room. He was only gone for a moment, returning with the smaller boy before grabbing a hold of the metal door and leaning with his weight to lazily pull it secure in its frame. Soren, on the other hand, had other interests besides messing around with his older pack mate for once. He was at the side of the bed in less than a second. Luckily he was cautious about his movement as he crawled onto the mattress. The younger Infected was quick to make himself comfy, pressing against [y/n]'s back side and nuzzling his upper back. Cole didn't seem to want any part of it. He stayed by the exit, sprawled out on the floor.  
'He will come around eventually,' I thought to myself, looking at Soren as a mental note example. He certainly didn't enjoy his company for a while, but now it was as if they were best friends. I wasn't going to push an Infected that towered over me in height and had enough muscle to boot. For now, everyone needed to take things slow... even if I was a bit forward with my own intentions.  
  
~ Reader POV ~  
  
**_*Beep*  
*Click, click*_**  
The sound of my safe room's door unlocking woke me up for the morning. It was becoming a gentle sound for me. Nothing like the screaming alarm that used to wake me up for school or work. That thing gave me such a headache, but I would take back living, populated civilisation, crappy customers who think their entitled to act the way they do, and the struggles of keeping up with bills any day.  
As my groggy awareness began to clear up, I couldn't help but notice how warm I was. The last thing I remember before falling asleep was the frigid sensation in my body. There was something else, but I found placing a finger on it rather difficult. My olfactory sensors kicked in to the smell of dried blood and rot, so I opened my eyes only to have my vision blocked about three inches out by a blue sweatshirt. Now I recall Matthias worming his way into the sheets with me shortly before falling asleep. He was so pleasantly cozy. Judging by the overwhelming sense of being watched, I assumed he and the others were awake. To prove this notion, I looked up to see sapphire eyes observing me. My face heated up, so I had to look elsewhere. Was he doing this all night?  
My stare fell on Cole who had comfortably curled up by the exit. That made two accounted for. I took notice to where the door was shut, so Soren was likely out there. I propped myself up on one elbow to take a look around the room and maybe begin wiggling myself out of Matthias's stubborn hold; consequently, I felt movement behind me that startled me into clinging on to the Infected. My head whipped around to see what it was only to realise that Soren had been nestled against me. Was he there all night as well?  
With some effort, I eventually peeled away from the two and got my own two feet on the floor. It was relieving to know the two were so eager to get so... friendly with me, but Cole was acting rather aloof as far as I noticed. I only hoped he would warm up to me soon. He didn't completely dislike me since he carried me all the way here, right? At least I told myself that. Thanks to him and Soren I had medicine now. I wasn't as sore as last night nor was my throat nearly as irritated. These were wonderful signs, but I found I was still in a weakened state as I made my way over to pop a couple painkillers and down a sip of the cough medicine.  
I decided it was time to get out again to gather some blankets and clothes. It wouldn't hurt to grab a few books, either. If I'm going to stay in my shelter for a couple of days to recover, I need some sort of entertainment to keep me going. After scooting over to my backpack, I emptied the ammunition boxes and placed them in one of my safes. The thrift store was only at the other end of the block, so I only needed an empty bag, my pocket knife, and my hand gun. Now that I had... guardian zombies, I doubt I would actually need to use any of my weapons.  
As soon as I got my shoes on, I clutched my backpack and went right for the door. Cole had already opened it for me - or us - plus all three of them looked like they were ready to go. I sauntered over to the door after Soren and Matthias had hopped outside, though the blonde Hunter remained behind me. Just as I reached the frame, I was nearly startled to fall on the floor. Luckily, Cole had caught me and supported me until I regained my bearings. There was a series of nearby gunshots that sent the two Infected outside the room into fits of snarling and deep growling. The two of us quickly exited the room and I shut the door. Cole had already made it outside with his companions. Were the idiots with the guns trying to attract the Horde?!  
I rushed outside, turning the safety off on my gun as the bullets whizzed by. Before I could get a good aim, the largest Hunter was in front of me. A hollow screech came from him. He was in pain. Cole crouched down, but his hand was covering the front of his shoulder. By now the bullets had stopped, so I rushed around the Hunter to see what had happened. A dark substance was staining his burgundy sweatshirt and it was spreading slowly. I knew he wouldn't die from this, but I found myself reaching for him to apply pressure to the undead's collarbone. He hissed at me, but didn't act on his anger. The other two started up again with warning growls while I listened to footsteps approaching. Keeping my hand on Cole, I turned to look at the arriving attackers. My eyes widened as I realised who they were.  
  
"What in God's name, [y/n]...?"


	3. I'm Not the Only One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Explaining this situation to yourself is hard enough. Now you have to explain it to other survivors... without getting shot.

Ellis looked nothing less than bewildered. He still held his hunting rifle out, ready to shoot if one of the Hunters happened to jump at him. To be honest, I wanted to scream at him for hurting Cole. Not a single one of my new companions had taken an offensive step towards the other survivors, yet that moron decided to take a shot. Although… I couldn’t fault him too much. If I were in their position, I likely would have done the same. Taking a step into a building that may have been promising only to be faced with three zombies. Zombies that could pounce on you and shred you ribbons in seconds. That would be a reasonable cause for distress. Survivors had more of a “fight” than “flight” reaction if they had the bullets; besides, there is no running from a Hunter. They would always be faster.  
I could feel my hands shaking from the weight of emotions filling my head. Social anxiety, worry for Cole, and fear were some factors. Responding was proving to be hard. Talking to them back at the mall had been so much easier; however, I wasn’t trying to keep - or wasn’t _being_ kept by Infected back then. There had been no need for panic. They were enroute to their own tasks, as were you. My focus flicked back to the tallest Hunter, where my hand still tried to stop his wound from bleeding too much.  
Cole’s clawed hand wrapped loosely around my wrist by the time I was looking at him again. I hadn’t even noticed him do it in the first place - his hold was so gentle. He didn’t try to push my hand away; and that same hand was just a little covered with the thick, dark substance that trickled lightly from his wound. Slowly, I looked up to see if his expression had changed. Any hints of pain, anger, or lingering discomfort were absent from his face. He was just… staring at me. His expression actually seemed empty.  
Nick obnoxiously cleared his throat, bringing me back into the full situation. I was still aware of what was going on, so it was mildly irritating that he felt the need to do that. I only got a little sidetracked when I was checking on Cole.  
“You goin’ to explain to us why you have these things around like guard dogs, or are you just gonna leave us hanging here to figure it out for ourselves?” Nick asked in an impatient tone. I turned to glare at him in response. Could he be any more of a dick?  
“Matthias, Soren, it’s okay…” My voice was barely above a whisper, but they were able to hear me through their growls; that was apparent when I suddenly felt two other bodies lightly brushing against my back. I turned just enough to see that the two smaller Hunters were still facing the four survivors standing at the doorway of the dilapidated bank. They both stood in offensive stances, as if creating a rather hazardous barrier to protect me and their injured friend. Their growls had stopped, but that didn’t mean they weren’t ready to pounce at the first sign of danger.  
I cleared my throat as much as the soreness would let me, and looked over at the other survivors. I hadn’t really asked myself why this pack was with me. They had protected me, retrieved medicine for me… If they wanted to stay with me, that was their choice. It might sound terrible, but they didn’t cost any of my supplies to keep around. They’re all dead.  
“I didn’t ‘tame’ them or teach them anything if that’s what you’re wondering. They’re as new to me as you guys are.” I saw Ellis’s mouth start to open, as if he was about to interrupt me, but Rochelle was quick to shut him up with an elbow jab. _Sigh_. “If it helps, yesterday after we met I was attacked by a Smoker. I blacked out, thinking that was it. I don’t know how long I was out, but I woke up right here where we’re standing now... to these guys surrounding me. They brought me medicine, too.”  
“Wait, wait, wait…” Coach said, taking a step forward from the group. He had relaxed and lowered his own gun once he had broken away from his group’s tight formation at the door. It was clear he didn’t see this pack as any sort of threat; however, the way he looked at me and the other three of my own group suggested he still couldn’t believe what was right in front of him. “So you’re telling me three zombies are keeping you like a pet or something?” His tone didn’t sound like he was keen on the situation. “It’s not like I don’t believe you, [y/n]- I can see what they’re doing… like they think we’re gonna hurt you or take you away from them or something.” He blinked hard as if he was trying to clear his eyes or wake up, then shook his head when he saw that I still had a small team of Hunters around me. “Y'all… I’m going outside to keep an eye on the streets.”  
“I think that’s pretty neat!” Ellis chimed in as his friend sauntered outside. I had no idea what else to say, so I was pretty grateful for him speaking up. “I mean, in the middle of a zombie apocalypse, who _wouldn’t_ want guard zombies?” He gradually lowered his gun, but he didn’t seem to totally trust Matthias and Soren. They remained somewhat crouched, ready to pounce. The energetic young man kept his finger off of the trigger of his hunting rifle, though his hands remained where he could quickly aim and fire if he needed to.  
I bit into my lower lip and looked at my hand that covered Cole’s collarbone. The fluid that escaped the wound covered my hand enough that I could make out the colour. It was definitely old, and a little congealed. His large hand still encompassing my wrist tightened upon seeing Nick step away from the doorway to gawk at the piles of useless bills lying around the lobby. When I had posted up here, I threw out quite a bit of the cash stacked in the vault to clear floor space. If he wanted to take any of the money, I certainly wasn’t going to stop him. That stuff was useless these days. My eyes looked up to see Cole’s own soft yellow orbs trailing after the suspicious human.  
“And I think it sounds like a disaster waiting to happen.” Nick finally spoke up again while he started a little activity of stuffing the largest bills he could find into his pockets. “What if they decide they don’t wanna keep you around anymore?” Matthias growled in protest, trying to make it clear that he understood every word that came out of the man’s mouth. The dark haired man made his way over to us once he seemed bored enough with the currency lying around the lobby. He seemed to be walking straight for the offended leader of my new companions. What was he planning? “A better idea would be preventing something like that from happening, like…”  
  
~ Matthias POV ~  
  
I really didn’t like the human in the suit walking around the room and watching us like we were a zoo exhibit. I could hear [y/n]’s pulse beating louder with every step that man took towards us. His words were venomous. Why would we not want our human anymore? Did he really think we would kill him? The sound of metal clacking echoed in the room, then [y/n] placed himself right between me and the barrel of a Magnum. A low bark erupted from my throat before I let my anger seep through my teeth with my growls. My packmates copied me, minus the bark. I was completely aware that the gun was going to be aimed at me, but the source of my anger came from the fact that this suited monkey _still_ held my human at gunpoint.  
My arms enveloped [y/n]’s waist and pulled him close so his back was flush against my chest. The scent of panic rolled off of him, but he didn’t budge from shielding me. I could feel him shaking. Part of me wanted to tear into this shady character in front of us, but a soft voice was keeping me in check.  
“It’s okay, Matt. I’m fine. We’re fine.” His trembling voice made his words sound like lies, though I know that’s not how he meant it.  
As much as I would like to help him, there was nothing I could do to communicate with these other survivors like [y/n] could. I felt him lay one of his hands over one of mine. Why didn’t he fear my claws? They could cut him so easily, even if I was being careful. I suppose it was another reason why I felt he was the one.  
“What the hell?” I heard Nick say as I watched him lower his pistol. “You guys see this too, right?” My shoulders relaxed as he did so, but Cole still reeked of anger. If this short-tempered human placed a toe out of line, my elder pack member was certainly going to pounce. I gazed back at him to meet his eyes for a moment and shook my head. We needed to trust that our living pack member had the situation under control. When my focus went back to our primary enemy, he was walking back to his own pack while rubbing his temples as if he had a headache.  
“It’s… hugging him?” The woman spoke this time, her brown eyes gazing skeptically at me. She was probably looking for my body language to indicate when I would attack. Sadly for her, it was a wasted effort.  
I’m not the only docile Hunter around. There are quite a few others that I had run into while travelling. Perhaps Cole could be seen as the biggest threat. He has been an Infected for far longer than myself, thus more feral; then again, it was easy for me to “tame” him (as the human had said). On the other hand, Soren has been one of us for only a little over a week. He and Cole got along like lifelong friends even though some sort of humanity lingered in him. I think it’s helped our tallest companion become more tolerant of those who still had a beating heart. He even took a bullet for [y/n]. As grumpy as he liked to be, it’s pretty obvious he cares about him. It wasn’t going to cause any problems besides create unnecessary pain. Injuries we receive in these dead bodies won’t heal, but we also won’t get any infections besides the primary one that makes us… undead. Pain is a given, but it won’t cause as much pain to us as it would to something living.  
I sighed and closed my eyes, then pressed my nose against the back of [y/n]’s neck. I could smell the leftover hormones from the fear he felt earlier; thankfully it wasn’t as overwhelming as it had been when there was a gun pointed at him. If this body were still living, I would likely smell the same. A pleased smile spread across my lips when I felt his skin heat up from how close we were. My chest rumbled softly with a purr, only loud enough for [y/n] to hear and feel against his back. He had defended us against those that would kill us.  
“Looks a lot more than a hug, if you ask me!” I heard the male with a southern accent speak up again. “I think he likes you, [y/n]!”  
“We haven’t seen anything like this. While we’re in town, I’d like the chance to study these special Infected if you find the time… and if they don’t mind,” a female voice jumped in before Ellis could say anything else. “I’m not going to poke at them like lab experiments - what I’m trying to say is, I’d like to observe them more closely. You know, learn more about them in case we come across more hostile ones. We’ve done pretty well fighting them off so far, but there may come faster, smarter Hunters that just want to kill us. None of you have to give an answer now. We’re staying in the hotel at the other side of the mall’s parking lot. The one next to the highway. Third floor.”  
“I know where you’re talking about,” [y/n] responded. “I’ll give it a thought… as long as Nick isn’t around.” He glanced at said man who was standing outside with Coach now.  
“I’ll talk to him, don’t worry. I’m sorry he’s so…”  
“It’s okay. I want him to be the one apologising... no offense.”  
“No, I understand. Maybe I’ll have talked him into giving a proper apology if you decide to come by.”  
Thankfully, they all kept their goodbyes brief. I was certainly relieved when they all left. Now we had [y/n] to ourselves once again. Upon feeling the small human in my arms trying to turn, I loosened my grip.  
  
~ Reader POV ~  
  
I took a deep breath after the odd group of survivors left. I really didn’t want to take another trip to the mall any time soon, but if I get bored, I may just go for something to do. I could come from the bridge to avoid the horde that occupied the main road, too. That path would only take five more minutes.  
As their footsteps faded off, I turned in the arms of the Hunter holding me. To be honest, I had no idea that they could purr. The soft vibrations I had felt against my back couldn’t be mistaken, though. I moved my hands from his and placed my right palm against his chest. There was hesitation in my movement as I made sure I wasn’t stepping over any boundaries, though I knew it wasn’t necessary to overthink it. Matthias had been very social and openly affectionate with me since I had woken up from my blackout. Even the way he looked at me seemed endearing. With how close we were, I could pick out the grey tones underneath his skin. He didn’t smell as bad as Cole, and his clothes didn’t look as tattered. Did being this sort of Infected stop the rotting? Or had he turned within the last month?  
At the sound of a few soft grunts and what could be described as “inside voice” barks, I leaned to look around the black-haired zombie. Soren was sitting on his knees in front of a fully seated Cole. The ginger was the one making most of the noises, and his hands were covered in the same thick, dark reddish-brown liquid that mine were. He reached up to the blonde’s collarbone again, as if trying to copy what I was doing - albeit a bit clumsy. I was just glad that bullet didn’t break anything. When I had been applying pressure, I felt the bone itself was still intact. The hole created was right above his collarbone, with the piece of lead embedded into his shoulder muscles just beyond it. Infected couldn’t heal, but they could take one hell of a beating before going down. Still, I would like to at least get that bullet out of him.  
I looked back at the blue eyes that seemed to be questioning what I was thinking. All I could do for now was give him a little smile to assure him it wasn’t anything bad, then I pushed some of his longer layered bangs out of his eyes. He seemed a little taken aback by the gesture, then he quickly shook his head like a dog trying to get something off. His bangs were back in his eyes, and his hair was a little more messy than before. I pursed my lips and rolled my eyes at him, to which he gave me an awkward grin. _What a look_ , I thought as I laughed softly, briefly.  
“Time to move,” I stated while I wiggled out of Matthias’s hold. He let go of me when he picked up on my movement, then got back on all fours to follow me. I walked back over to the door of my vault and picked up my old backpack before pulling the straps over my shoulders. “Let’s go find a pharmacy. I need some tweezers or needle-nose pliers to pull that bullet out of Cole’s shoulder.”  
The recently injured undead looked at me after hearing his name. He didn’t reveal his thoughts on his face, but I had a feeling he caught every word I said. Soren seemed to understand me the fastest since he was already bounding towards the open doorway of the building. Matthias and Cole started after me when I followed the smallest of the pack.  
Hopefully whatever pharmacy we came across wouldn’t be completely raided. I wasn’t banking on getting extra supplies besides just something to pull out the bullet, but it would be nice to get my hands on a first aid kit, pain pills, rubbing alcohol, or _something_.  
The streets seemed empty today, which was a huge relief. I had been rather worried that the gunshots would have attracted a few unwanted guests... or an entire Horde. Frankly, that would have sucked. I jogged across the road to the opposite sidewalk with my Infected company staying close behind me. I quickly picked up on how soundless they were when they moved. It must be some sort of Hunter instinct. Now that I was thinking about it, I had never heard the footsteps of their kind. I’ve always heard them screech or howl as if they were calling the rest of their pack before they attack. When I’ve had to hide from them, I could hear their claws scratching against solid surfaces or sniffing around my old hideouts. Every once in a while I could catch the sound of their shoes scooting against gravel or pavement; other than that, these guys moved noiselessly.  
The first (and hopefully only for today) pharmacy we came across had a busted door laying down in the entryway of the abandoned shop. I stepped across it with a reasonable amount of caution - slipping and landing on glass wasn’t something I’d like to do. One injured party member was already one too many, and I certainly didn’t want to turn that into two. The trio of zombies hopped over the door and glass with ease, each taking their turn as to not bump into one another. Soren was the last to make the jump. He purposely jumped farther and tackled his friend in the royal blue hoodie, to which he reacted by turning over and pinning down the younger male. While they continued their humourous little tussle, I walked with their tallest towards the basic hygiene section. Well… he didn’t walk upright, but he didn’t crawl, either. It was more of a crouched walk.  
As luck would have it, we passed by a shelf that held one large bottle of rubbing alcohol left on it. I picked it up and unscrewed the lid to remove the seal. I’m positive that the undead don’t get infections, but I could at least clean whatever tool I found. I wiped off the dust from the bottle and tucked it under my left arm for the time being.  
The signs at the endcaps of the isles helped us find our way to the personal hygiene supplies. There certainly wasn’t much left. I took off my backpack and set it in the floor, then sat in front of the section to sort through things that had fallen into a pile on the bottom shelf. I took a few things and tossed them in my bag; a handful nail files, a couple pairs of nail clippers, and a single pair of eyebrow tweezers at the very bottom of the pile. Cole had sat next to me when I began my search, so it was easy for me to reach him. I stripped the tweezers of their packaging and turned towards my neighbouring Hunter.  
“I’ll have that bullet out in no time.” I remarked as I got up on my knees and scooted a little closer to him. My voice didn’t sound as rough as before, and as a bonus, speaking didn’t irritate my throat like before. The itch of a cough still lingered in my throat, but I was certainly thankful for the medicine that these Hunters had given me. This could be a way that I return the favour.  
“I’m… really sorry if this hurts. I’ll try my best to keep it from hurting too much, but I can’t really promise anything.” Honesty is the best policy. For now, he could keep the hoodie on. Digging that piece of metal out could make him bleed, but I guess we will see very soon. I trusted the ghost-like Hunter to stay still, but I still spread the bullet hole in the stained fabric of his clothing with my free hand. With my shaky, dominant hand, I raised the tweezers towards the wound. Cole felt tense, which might complicate my task. After taking a deep breath that consisted of musty pharmacy air and the scent of decay, I pushed the open end of the tweezers into the crudely pierced flesh. The hiss that came from the much larger Infected caused me to lower my head and pull in my shoulders. Despite how emotionless he seemed, this guy could be terrifying. I kept my hands where they were since we were already this far, additionally occupying myself with trying to make myself as small as possible. My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest.  
“I-I’m sorry…” I apologised as I went stiff, trying not to move and cause further discomfort. Hands on my lower back made me glance unhurriedly around myself, then up. It was Cole who held me in place, yet he wasn’t even looking at me. He looked… upset? Was he upset that he scared me or upset because the tweezers hurt him? His palms pressed against my back to push me closer to the wound again. Assuming that could be taken as a silent “please, continue”, I went back to work on getting that chunk of lead out.  
The remaining lights in the store helped me see into the wound a little better. I used the sleeve of my shirt to dry up the blood that got in the way. It wasn’t bleeding as badly as it was before, at least. Until now, I didn’t think the undead could feel pain. Their bodies were just that - dead. Part of the body still needs to function to operate like a special Infected, I suppose. I could tell Rochelle about this discovery if I decide to go see her and the other survivors again. Low wails that seemed to emanate from deep in Cole’s chest would cut the silence every few moments. Getting this bullet out seemed to be taking forever. I’m certain I could do this with ease if I had the right tools, but I needed to make do with what I could find.  
When I felt something hard with the pair on pincers, I managed to get a hold of it and pull it out with a little effort. My excitement ebbed away when I noticed that I only got out half of the bullet. I could only hope the other half had become scattered shrapnel in the muscle behind his collarbone. I let the burgundy-hooded Hunter relax for the time being while I wiped the coagulated blood and sweat from my hands onto my shirt, then cleaned off the tweezers.  
After a couple moments of silence, I spoke up again. “Are you ready for round two?” I asked with a small smile, trying to bring some light into the situation. Cole took his time with his answer. He slowly closed his eyes, then nodded once. “Alright. Try to stay relaxed. I bet I can get the rest out faster this time.” By now, Matthias and Soren had returned. The smaller of the two crawled to lean against his older packmate’s back. His contact seemed to actually soothe the rigid zombie’s nerves as his hold on me loosened. I took this chance to slide the tweezers back into the hole in his bruised flesh.  
The next piece was much more easily located. As I angled the pincers to grab it, I ended up pushing the piece further into the muscle. A slightly louder sound of discomfort rose out of Cole.  
“Shh, it’s okay… I almost have it,” I whispered, chasing the shrapnel as gently as I could with the small tool. Digging a little further resulted in a rather grotesque, fleshy sound. If you have ever skinned an animal before after hunting, you would know exactly the noise I’m talking about. Luckily, I managed to find the next piece with my bloodied tweezers. “Got it!” I placed it next to the first half of the bullet after removing it to find that it was the same size. The breath I was holding poured from my lips slowly. Thank goodness it was only two pieces. Personally, I would have preferred it be in one piece, and I’m sure Cole thought the same; nevertheless, I managed to get it out.  
I wasn’t given the chance to get up and give the blonde the space he needed - he had a different idea. His arms enveloped me completely as he pulled me closer to him. He lowered his head towards my neck, and pressed his face against the exposed skin. This made me feel incredibly tiny compared to him. I would be totally helpless if he decided to kill me. The only things I could hear were my own breathing and the lights overhead flickering. My [e/c] eyes gave Matthias a quizzical look over Cole’s shoulder. Either he didn’t understand my wordless question or he didn’t see the point in returning an answer. He wasn’t on edge like he had been when there was a gun pointed at my head, so I could safely deduce that this motion was a “thank you” and not a “I’m about to eat you”. I exhaled against his neck and collarbone, finally relaxing.  
It was strange feeling relaxed while in physical contact with one of the Infection’s most lethal creations. It was also strange that I felt so secure being around three of them. I don’t know if I could trust seeing another living human with a set of Infected following them before I met this trio. I’m glad the confrontation with the quartet of survivors didn’t end poorly. They seemed to trust me enough, even from only meeting them twice.  
The sensation of something hot and wet against my neck brought me back to the current affair. As Cole let go and backed away from me, I reached my hand up to touch the slimy patch on my neck. It felt like… saliva? That aside, I always thought the dead would feel cold. No pulse, no body heat. So far I had noticed the older two of the triad both had fevers. That made sense, as far as this being considered a pandemic.  
“D-Did you--... Did you just... lick me?” I asked with disbelief. Soren snickered at my question, apparently finding it funny. Cole merely gave me a single nod without expression. “If that’s what level of friendship we’re on now, I get to do this.” I cleaned my right hand on my jeans as well as I could and licked my thumb to cover it in a thick coat of my own spit, then I reached out to the one who started this sequence of events in the first place and wiped my thumb around the wound to clean it. _Wait. Where’s the bullet hole?_ I pulled my sleeve past my wrist and wiped it over where I thought the injury was. I couldn’t find it even though it should be lined up with the hole in Cole’s hooded sweatshirt. There’s no way it could have healed, could it?  
My confused expression and semi-frantic searching must have caught Matthias’s attention, because he was beside me without me noticing that he had moved in the first place. His focus was on the same spot mine was, then he looked at me as if I had an answer. Soren followed suit, but looked between myself and Cole for some sort of answer. They had both seen his wound, too. You really couldn’t miss the bloody, dark red fabric with more or less a black hole in the middle. Now it was just… gone.  
Once my attention was on the leader of the pack again, I first observed was how intensely he was staring at me. He was a lot closer to me than before, too. His face was at most three inches from mine. I started to scoot away on my hands and butt, making it as clear as I could that his proximity was startling; even so, he grabbed my shirt and dragged me back to him. The distance between my face and his was nearly non-existent - until a deafening crash outside alarmed all of us.  
A low growl slipped from Matthias as he let go of me. He started pacing back and forth between me and the end of the isle as I quickly threw my new supplies into my backpack and zipped it up. I would have liked to search the store for anything salvageable, but there was the pressing matter of what caused that noise and what danger it could pose. I hauled my bag over my back and made a dash towards the door with the Hunters. They leaped over the door like they had done when we first got here. Since I was last, I didn’t take much caution across the glass. There wasn’t enough time for that if it was a Horde.  
Across the street from us sat a car with a dying alarm trying to make itself heard through the mass that laid on top of it. The mass itself? It was the bulkiest special Infected known to the remaining survivors. A Tank. If I could hear its dying moans, so could the rest of my group. The angriest screech I have ever heard echoed off of the buildings around us. My undead protectors went into a triangular formation around me. I surveyed everything around me in a panic. _Where did that come from?_ As if answering my thoughts, a Hunter I have never seen before landed right on top of the expiring Tank. It didn’t waste any time tearing into its throat and chest. I covered my ears to block the out the sound of it mutilating the tough muscle and skin on the giant creature.  
The three Hunters encircling me didn’t seem to take this threat as seriously as I did. That didn’t leave me very comfortable; that is, until Matt pressed himself against my hip as if he was trying to comfort me. It helped a little, but I really didn’t want to see this new Hunter attack my companions. If I learned anything from fighting them off: a pissed Hunter is a fatal Hunter.  
“I think we should ru--”  
“Milo! It’s dead, give it a rest!” A feminine voice interrupted me. “Knocking it out of that building was enough, then I had to chase you all the way out here! You’ve caused enough noise. We have to go!” The source of the voice, a young woman with short, copper-coloured hair walked around the flattened vehicle. “What was the point of all of that screaming? You’ll attract a--” She looked over at me while gazing around to get a check on her surroundings. Her expression slowly evolved from aggressively concerned, to cautious, and finally to delight. “No fucking way.” The stranger gaped at Matthias, Cole, and Soren who all now stood in defensive positions between myself and Milo. “They weren’t lying… I’m not the only one!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uploaded my first three chapters in one sitting! I also have these uploaded to my account Kurai-Ryora on deviantART and I think at one point I uploaded something of these to fanfiction dot net? I can't remember. Anyway, the last chapter will be soon.


	4. We'll Be Okay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Your new friend tells you her story, and may have some advice.

My mouth was slightly open, but there were too many questions flying through my mind and I really couldn’t pinpoint what to ask first. Plus, the noise of growls going between all of the undead did put a damper on my focus. Despite the sounds, this person looked  _ beyond _ excited. She bounced lightly, feet not quite leaving the ground - but the energy was certainly there. Her stare wasn’t on me for very long. In fact, she had laid her hand over Milo’s face while shushing him to get a closer look at Matt’s pack. That was certainly brave of her considering the force of a bite from a Hunter would easily result in the loss of her fingers… or entire hand past the wrist.

“I mean, I know I couldn’t have been the only one in the first place. There were a couple of others at the facility that-” Her sentence cut off when she looked back up at me, then straightened out like she was ready to start over. “I’m so sorry! That look on your face- you have no idea what I’m talking about! Haha, woops. I just got so ahead of myself because you have three. Whole. Zombies.” She really loaded on some emphasis on those last three words. How was someone so peppy during an  _ apocalypse _ ? Of the undead variety?

My hands fell to rest on Matt’s and Cole’s shoulders, which seemed to get them to relax enough. I found myself staring at Milo while she chattered on. He looked about the same size as Matthias, perhaps slightly taller. His hair was thick and black with messy layers that fell a little past his shoulders. The wounds that littered his upper body left little of how he died to the imagination. A gnarly bite was taken out of his right arm, just a little up from his elbow, and stab wounds around his torso with an additional slash through his left thigh all pointed to blood loss as the cause of death. He looked completely content since his own human companion seemed at ease.

“I’ll get to the point. I’m immune to the infection. You’re immune, too. We smell different to the Infected than other humans who aren’t immune. Uh… How do I put this without sounding weird? Certain undead are attracted to us… and it’s mostly Hunters who have responded this way. And it seems apparent that gender isn't an issue… My name is Charla.”

There were still so many questions I had, but some were filtering through my thoughts a little easier now. Now I could actually hold a conversation since she gave a little summary explaining what she meant. Right as I wanted to speak, a high-pitched roar echoed between the buildings a few blocks away. The Hunters quickly went into offensive stances, facing the direction the sound had come from. I couldn't just let Charla stay out on the roads like this, and my safehouse wasn't too far off. I was never really one to invite strangers to my place of living, especially with as little as I knew about this pair; however, if they wanted to hurt us, that would have already happened. Seriously… Milo took out an entire Tank by himself. Not to doubt my own zombies’ abilities, but I think they would be up against something they weren’t used to.

“I’ll introduce myself when we're safe. Follow us!” I waved for Charla and Milo to stay close as we started on a light run towards the bank. Just by habit, I kept my footsteps as quiet as I could. Charla was just as silent as the Hunters, so there wasn't a point in policing them. It was like they had been out here longer than I. The mention of a facility had my head mildly reeling in the meantime. If there was a large scale shelter, I could use an actual bed - and it was likely they could use a scavenger… or four. Thinking of the Infected beside me actually made me worry about what would happen to them at the facility if I went. Why else would my new acquaintance be out here and not in there? I could get my answers later. For now, we needed to put some distance between ourselves and the Horde.

(10 minutes later.)

“Woah, you managed to find a pretty solid shelter! I didn’t even think of finding something like this,” Charla rambled on as I shut the door behind us. The Horde would be long gone by the time it would unlock itself again. It was pretty handy that enough electricity still ran in this place to keep that timelock going; still, there was a worry that I could end up locked in here for good if the power cut off at a very unlucky time.

“I know… knew someone who worked at a bank. Learned a lot of things from them before they turned. I’m a fast learner, too, so that helps.” I set my heavy bag down and removed the supplies we had scavenged to start organising them on the shelves. “Now that we’re safe for a few hours, I’m [y/n]. I appreciate your immediate trust to let me know your name. Sorry if I seem weird, I haven’t had human interaction in a while besides some survivors I met recently. I’m not used to it. I’ve been alone for several months now, then suddenly I run into some really weird group, a Smoker tried to kill me, and I got rescued by some Hunters. Now I’m meeting you, and you have a Hunter following you around, too. It’s… odd. I assumed there was nothing left to look forward to in this life, ya know?” I really didn’t mean to dump everything like that on an acquaintance, but here we are. I turned back to face the rest of the room when I finished my minor chore, and everyone was staring at me. What a lovely audience.

“I can’t… relate to what you’re going through, but I get what you’re saying.” Charla finally responded. “I was lucky enough to get into a sanctuary early on, but things got… uncomfortable.”

I walked over to my mattress and sat down on it, then Matthias, Cole, and Soren followed me over to it. Matt crawled onto the bedding and made his way behind me while I patted the spot a couple of feet to my right. Personal space was important to me, and the young woman seemed to take the hint as she seated herself. Cole and Soren stayed on the bare floor in front of me, but Milo didn’t seem to like his partner being so close to the trio without him. Naturally, he invited himself onto the bed to situate himself behind Charla.

“Uncomfortable? We’ve got several hours, so you can share your whole story if you’d like.” Matt didn’t like Milo being so close it seemed, and so had to make it apparent I was off limits. He got into a more human sitting position in which I was now sitting between his legs, his front pressed to my back, and his arms slid securely around my waist. Milo nearly copied Matt, but he only kept one arm around Quinn and seemed far more relaxed. A calm Hunter was incredibly unusual. It was unsettling, to say the least. Charla was already chill with her spot, leaning back against him while he rested his chin on her head. They had the whole relationship thing down, huh?

“Uh… if you say so.” Quinn reached down to lace their fingers with Milo’s. The pair seemed pretty content; however, my heart felt fluttery with Matt holding me and breathing down my neck. He  _ had _ to have sensed it, because I felt his chest shake with a soft chuckle. Ugh, now my face felt warm. It was apparent my new living friend noticed my reaction to the zombie being so affectionate with me because I have never seen a more smug grin in my life. “Aww, he is  _ so _ in love with you!”

“Wh-” I started to protest, but she continued on as if she hadn’t noticed me trying to talk. Matt burying his nose in the hair on the back of my head didn’t help.

“So, a week into the breakout, sanctuaries were popping up all over the place. My folks decided we needed to get to one with a solid medical facility included, so we started packing up my dad’s RV with water, food, batteries, books- Lots of things to last a long road trip to the west coast. A couple more days passed, and we were about to head out, then there was news of a much closer research facility opening its gates for people who wouldn’t mind being tested for immunity or disease, look for a cure, yadda, yadda- Tall gates and thick walls, a huge protected parking lot, promises of places to sleep, food, water, electricity,  _ safety _ ... It sounded too good to be true. So we went there instead. It was hours closer. Four hours away instead of twenty-three? Hell yeah.”

Matthias grumbled quietly, almost like he was purring. That was another new sound. His hold on me had loosened up a bit, and as it turned out, I was leaning back against him. I couldn’t recall moving, but being distracted by a story can keep you unaware of your own small actions. I’m certainly not complaining. I was comfortable and I felt... safe.

“We got to the facility, checked in with some guys in white lab coats, settled in. Hundreds of people were there. It was super spacious. The first few weeks there were great. With the electricity and water provided, I was still able to play video games, take hot showers, watch movies, et cetera. The doctors were only taking blood samples at the time. Of course, the food already at the facility could only last for so long, so they started organising scavenger groups to take a semi out to nearby towns and gather drinking water, water filters, food, appliances, basically anything they could get their hands on. Being stuck in a facility with nothing to worry about except a curfew can get boring. So I volunteered for the scavenger crew! The death rate didn’t scare me. I wanted a purpose to our little community of two-thousand, five-hundred and seventeen people. I’m young, able bodied, athletic. Perfect candidate for the crew!” Charla looked back and up at her zombie boyfriend fondly. “That’s when I met Milo!”

(1 year, 7 months earlier.)

~Charla POV~

“Everyone, heads up! We’ve got a new recruit for our team!”

I stood as straight as I could next to the woman catching the crew’s attention. Her name was Natalie. She had long, dirty blonde hair tied back in a tight, very professional-looking bun, and she was nearly a half foot taller than me. Judging by what she was wearing, how strong her voice was, and the intimidating power she exuded, I’d say she was a veteran. I put on my best smile as I faced my new coworkers. A couple of people definitely looked dead inside, but the other four looked absolutely delighted.

“This is Charla. We’ve got twenty minutes until we leave, so everyone get acquainted, gear up, and load up.”

Natalie left me to begin preparations. I stood awkwardly for a few seconds before someone finally got up and approached me. The first thing I noticed was how much taller than me he was. I’m a solid five feet and three inches tall, and the top of my head  _ probably _ reached his stomach. I craned my neck back to actually get a good look at his face. He was one of the ones that in no way looked happy to be there, or to see a new face; however, his resting expression still looked kind. A very tiny smile curled the corners of his lips as he held out a hand towards me to shake. God, was he cute.

“Hey. I’m Milo. It’s nice to meet you, Charla.” His voice was so pleasant. I found myself distracted for a few long seconds before I was able to respond.

“H-Hi! I’m--”  _ He already knows your name, you moron! _ “-happy to meet you, too!” I took his hand and shook it firmly. The others didn’t seem too interested in getting to know me at the moment, so I looked back up at Milo. “Tough crowd, huh?” He chuckled at my rhetorical question, then decided to answer it anyway.

“We lost someone on last week’s big scavenge. Middle aged guy named Darnell. Real nice. Everyone got along with him pretty well. Knew how to turn a bad mood into a good one. Good at helping team members get on good terms with each other. We’re all still pretty hurt about it, but we can mourn on our own time. Sitting around and feeling sorry for ourselves isn’t going to feed the community.”

“Right… I heard about that. I’m so sorry. If you or anyone in the group needs someone to talk to…”

“Ah, no- That’s sweet of you, considering we’re just a bunch of strangers. It’s okay, though. We’ve gotten through it so far. Anyway, what made you want to join us?” He had a full smile for the first time in the conversation.

(Present.)

~Reader POV~

Despite being dead, the way Milo looked at his partner held plenty of emotion. It was interesting to hear backstory on them. They knew each other even when that long-haired Hunter was alive. I didn’t get to know Matthias, Cole, or Soren when they were living, which really made me consider what they were like. How much of their personality remained?

“He was just really nice to me the first day! Everyone else just seemed relieved that other people didn’t get turned off from going directly out into danger, even if it meant surviving. In the team, there are those on lookout who are really good with guns and stuff, then there’s those who do the actual scavenging. Everyone keeps a gun and a knife on them, but I was part of the team that gathered and packed up what I could. So my handgun was in my holster the whole time. Milo was part of the lookout. Lookout keeps their guns drawn, and they usually have the bigger, harder-hitting guns. And we usually go off in pairs to cover larger areas! That stuff… isn’t really important to the point of this story.”

I looked over at the Hunters that decided to remain on the bare floor next to my feet. Soren fell asleep on Cole, his face completely concealed by his messy, orange hair, and being face-down in the larger zombie’s lap. The blonde didn’t seem to mind. Their personalities were all so different. Soren was energetic, playful, and totally comfortable around everyone. Cole was patient, silent, very slow to trust anyone, but protective. Matt was clearly short-tempered and territorial, but he showed a lot more intelligence than I was used to from the undead - all of them did - and he seemed to always want to let me know he cared in different ways.

“Anyway,” she continued, “Milo and I began spending time together outside of work. He had lost his father in a scavenge a week before I had joined. I really couldn’t imagine the pain of that loss, but I was there for him. I got him to meet my parents, we actually started dating just a month after knowing each other. Fast, I know, but I guess feelings are elevated in times of crisis.”

I nodded, letting her know I was listening. She had to be building up to the point here. No social interaction in a while had me zoning out a little on long conversation, but I needed to know what happened and what it meant to be “immune”.

“Then… everything started getting weird in the community. Some people outside of the scavenger teams - just plain civilians that were staying for a place to survive. I’m talking elderly people who had found solace to hopefully live out the rest of their days in peace just started… disappearing. They had no chores or responsibilities, they just enjoyed being somewhere safe. The doctors and military guys said they passed away in their sleep. At first I believed it. Until Milo got hurt on a hunt. It was my fault.”

(1 year, 2 months earlier)

~Charla POV~

My ears rang from the sounds of the Horde around us screaming, hungry, accompanied by the thrum of gunshots. There were tons of canned food behind that Witch, and I just had to drop one.  _ Clumsy, stupid… I’m so fucking stupid… _ I ran as fast as I could, dodging gnarled, rotten hands that swatted and grasped at me, eventually making it back to the armoured bus. A quick scan of my surroundings told me someone was missing.

“Where’s Milo?!” I shouted at Natalie over the thunderous noise going on around us.

“He went looking for you!” She responded. I turned back to hop off the bus, her hand just missing my arm. “He’s gone, we need to go!”

I didn’t care. My feet carried me back into dangerous territory before my mind could comprehend what was happening. Not even 15 feet from the bus, a shriek resounded against the buildings and I was pinned before I even had a chance to see the Hunter. As terrified as I was, I couldn’t get out a single sound; however, the Hunter on top of me didn’t even move to shred me as I thought he would. His claws had dug into my forearms, but the grip was loosened as he was… smelling me?  _ This Hunter is smelling me. The other Infected are staying away… _

The sound of a point blank 9mm resulted in the creature crumpling on top of me. His mouth oozed black liquid over the wounds he had inflicted on my arm. My head was pounding. A hand pulled me off of the ground and into strong arms, before carrying me back to the bus.

It took some time for me to gain my composure. I recognised Milo, as he held me in his lap on the rough ride home. He smiled and pushed my hair out of my face to kiss my forehead, but my eyes focused on the bite taken out of his arm. My eyes began to well up as he held my hand.

“Milo-”

“I’ll be okay. We’ll be okay.”

(2 hours later)

I kneeled down on the ground, fists bruised with possibly a couple of broken fingers and knuckles from pounding on the polycarbonate glass that separated me from Milo. My eyes were blurry from sobbing as I watched men in black uniforms holding my love against a concrete wall. 

His infection had worsened on the way back. Natalie had already phoned the doctors at the facility. They were supposed to help, but the cells further down the hall were anything but empty. There were Infected. Former elderly. Darnell (now also Infected) even sat in one of the cells at the beginning of the hall. Milo yelled his name as these villains had dragged us down the corridor. Machines sat outside of every cell. There were two cameras in every cell. This wasn’t help. This was a controlled experiment facility.

I could tell Milo was on the edge. He could change at any moment. I would lose him. The men laughed at me every time I yelled a threat or punched the wall. As tired and dizzy as I was, I stood to my feet, and walked to the other side of my cell. With every bit of power I could muster, I ran at the thick wall and performed a jumping kick. A small crack. That was impressive for a girl my size and stature, so I did it again. And again. And again. The uniformed group stopped laughing. One talked into a walkie-talkie, but I couldn’t hear anything.

After a few more jump kicks, my legs were going numb. It was difficult to stand, but I didn’t need any help with that as two rather intimidating, larger women entered my cell and picked me up by my arms. A doctor followed in soon after and yanked my sleeves back. The puncture wounds on my arms were scars at this point.

_ I’m… healed? What the hell? _

“Just as I thought. You are what we’ve been looking for.” The doctor reached to the small mic on her coat as she gave a command that made my stomach twist. “Go ahead and kill him. We don’t need undead with his physical capabilities. He could cause issues.” I watched a couple of the men in the other room grin and nod as the third took out a knife.

“No-” My eyes began to burn. I had no more tears left. My mouth was so dry.

“Now, we will need to keep you alive. A couple of blood samples today, then we’ll get you something to eat and drink. How’s that sound?” I heard Milo scream, and I couldn’t do anything as I watched helplessly. They were stabbing him, smiling about it as if it was fun.

“ _ No- _ ” Turns out I did have enough water in my body to cry more.

“Oh, you’ll get over it. Men come and go. Besides, since bringing you in here, a couple of Hunters have seemed to become very interested in you.” My eyes couldn’t believe what I was watching. As soon as Milo’s body was lifeless, they let him go and left the room, locking the door behind them. “We have some ideas, and the other girl before you just couldn’t… handle them. She was immune like you.”

“No!”

“Ugh… brat.” The doctor left the room for a moment, but the militant women holding me didn’t budge. I couldn’t hold back the waterworks streaming down my face. It hurt too much. Breathing was difficult, like something was crushing my ribcage.

“ **No!** ”  _ I can’t comprehend him being taken from me. I don’t believe it. _ The previously mentioned pair of Hunters were across the hall from me, now crashing themselves into the walls. My yelling seemed to have stirred not only them, but the rest of the captured or “hand raised” zombies. All of them seemed to be aggressively attempting escape.

This event going on apparently distracted the guards holding me, because I pulled my arms from them easily and made a break for the still open door. The male officer entered my room when I was so close and captured me by the throat. I tried to cough, wheeze, or breathe, but his hold was literally crushing my trachea. He held me in the air as I tried kicking at him, my nails digging deep into his wrist.

“We are going to have to ask you to stop,” the doctor chimed in from the doorway, ”You are rousing all of our specimens. We can’t let them hurt themselves… I have the syringe ready.” She stepped closer, while the edges of what I could see began turning black thanks to the brute holding me. Movement made it clear that I would lose consciousness faster. “This will only be a little pinch-”

Shattered glass covered all of us, chunks, daggers, and splinters flying through the room with a deafening shriek making all of us go deaf. I was dropped onto the floor at some point, my brain feeling like it was going to burst out of my skull at any moment. I couldn’t move. My vision was fading in and out, dark and blurry - but I could hear shouts and cries from the people around me.

I can hardly remember when things had quietened down again. Besides the sound of laboured breathing above me, everything was silent again. I could care less for what happened to me at this point. I could feel claws lightly pricking my backside and my legs as I was lifted from the cold floor. The entity squatted so I sat awkwardly in their lap. Sharp talons pushed aside my hair, and cool lips pressed to my forehead. I could hear his calming words in the back of my head.

_ We’ll be okay. _

(Present.)

~Reader POV~

I was left dumbfound at everything she had gone through. There are actual facilities that do that? I shouldn’t be surprised. The government has never actually cared for the people existing, just making sure that the human race is continued on. Matthias’s grip on me had stiffened. I know I had seemed like I wanted to go there, he was good at reading my mind sometimes. Going there was no longer an option.

“Milo ended up carrying me out, and I don’t know how he managed to get past the security… or people in general with guns. I was sick and sore for days. We sort of kept our scavenging roles for our trips now. Which is what we were doing earlier when a wandering Tank spotted us. Those things are pretty mindless and territorial. Dangerous, too.” She reached up and cupped the side of her undead partner’s face. “Some things I have noticed is that he had rotted at all since becoming an Infected. He’s kept most of his personality, the transformation just sprinkled in some bloodlust for other Infected.” She smiled nervously at me, as if waiting for my response.

“I’m so sorry that happened to you guys. I’m… not sure what to say? I’m definitely not going there. To that place you guys escaped. You say it’s been over a year, what awful things could be happening over there?” I don’t think I could have formed a better thought process, but that didn’t seem to phase her. Talking about everything had her cheery mood leave a while ago.

“Apparently it’s the same. We caught Natalie and the scavenging team out a couple months ago. She was nervous about us being around at first. Sad to see Milo like this. I asked about my parents and she said they were heartbroken, so I gave her a message to give them. No one in the facility heard anything about what happened. The leaders had told everyone we died while out on a scavenging trip.” She huffed as it was apparent how recent the memory was. “Figures.”

**_*Beep*_ **

**_*Click, click*_ **

“Door is unlocked again,” I mentioned to her, just to reduce panic over the sudden noise.

“Ah- Then it’s late now, right? I need to go. My base is at the most southern point of the city in the blue and white warehouses surrounded by gates. We just climb them to get in and out. If you need anything, feel free to pop on by!”

“Alright, it was nice to-”

“Thanks for listening to me. Uh, just pay attention to your pack’s needs and wants. Keep an eye on them, too.” She winked at me. “They might stop rotting if your bond is close enough. Being immune comes with a lot of perks for you  _ and _ them.” Milo returned to all fours and pounced over to the vault door. Charla followed, opened the door, and left without another word.

Matt grunted and nuzzled his face into the spot where my neck meets my shoulder. He was the most affectionate out of the three by far, at least to me. Now that I had the information from her, I knew I was immune. How many others were out there who had immunity? It wasn’t really a concern, but making a friend was nice. Everyone was gone as far as I knew. The exception being that ragtag team of survivors, Charla and her Hunter… and my group.

The larger creature holding me pulled me sideways to lay down together. It was hard to know now whether these guys actually liked me, or were looking for a way to extend their lives. I turned in Matthias’s arms to face him. He wasn’t afraid of eye contact, but his coherence and intelligence above the other two had me shyly breaking my gaze away from his. A soft rumble rose from his chest. His claws trailed up my back, causing me to shiver, and his hand finally rested on the back of my head. Curious, I looked up at him once more. Grey-blue eyes looking at me with hesitation, like he was trying to read my emotion.

Finally, he pulled in his hold on me, causing our lips to connect. A sharp tooth grazed my lower lip, yet I couldn’t find a reason to care about a tiny cut. It was odd kissing a zombie since you don’t really see them capable of trying to be so gentle. He could rip off my skin with his teeth and I know his grip could crush me if he wanted, but he controlled his strength. His hands moved down to my waist and he moved me to lay flat on the mattress as he hovered above me, our lips moving together hungrily. My arms found their way around his neck, wanting to keep him close.

Regardless of some instinct in the back of my mind telling me this was dangerous, I couldn’t help the feeling of butterflies fluttering about in my stomach.

~Matthias POV~

I don’t know why I started kissing him, it just… felt right. I wanted to claim him as mine. For me. I hadn’t thought the human girl was so knowledgeable about immunity in human blood. There was nothing that connected my affection for him in that manner. I had just been following him for so long. Known him in person for a short time. His scent is sweet and intoxicated. [Y/n] is everything to me. I want to keep him forever. I wish I could tell him the words swimming around in my head every time he smiles at me.

_ I love you. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this far! Last chapter coming soon. ;)


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